We also now know that many of our Pension Fund managers took improper payments and now most of our pension funds our running out money and woefully underfunded:

Pension underfunding eventually will make it impossible for some governments to raise money in bond markets and will require federal intervention through explicit or “implied guarantees” of municipal debt, Kramer, 64, said in an interview today at Bloomberg News headquarters in New York.

“The collective deficits should not be and will not be overcome by an aggressive investment strategy,” Kramer said. “I think that actually, ultimately, the severity of the problem will become publicly visible and you’ll have more entities that will have difficulty accessing the bond markets.”

$1 Trillion????? That means many cities, counties, and states are bankrupt. We just had a city in Alabama go bankrupt last week over pension issues.

When a nation runs out of money...historicially it starts taking protective measures which only serve to slow the economy further....

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. imposed duties of as much as 99 percent on steel pipe from China after American producers led by U.S. Steel Corp. complained that the imports were being dumped at below-market prices.

At this point...based on the fact that the banks are not marking assets to market...it is really hard to tell what is solvent and what is not anymore...the only thing we know is we are seeing unprecedented tax revenue slowdowns and unprecedented sales slowdowns.

It is the first time on record that year-over-year online sales have declined for two straight quarters, after dropping one percent in the second quarter. Online sales have declined from previous year totals in three of the last four quarters.

“The third quarter showed negative marginal growth for the second consecutive quarter, the first time on record we’ve witnessed sustained dips in U.S. e-commerce spending.....

At this point, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly where things are going...but to say the recession is over seems remote at best....especially in light of the fact that we are still losing over 500K jobs per week and historically very few are hiring or expanding.

My guess is prepare for something you are unprepared for.....11.10.9.....you will feel.

October revenue collections are below target and the U.S. recession is placing pressure on programs such as Medicaid, a federal-state program that helps pay for indigent health care. Corzine didn’t disclose the scope of the revenue drop.

I never did understand the mentality where any person (does not matter their title) says they have a right to retire on my future work because they put in their time (20 years, at age 62, or whatever). If a group of people, state workers or whomever, want to start a pension fund and take ownership of that benefit they should. Or start a commune- like a kibbutz- great idea.

But how can the localities or state garauntee the fund payments in perpetuity? especially when our state workers are paid so well (I think the average total compensation for a state worker is in the 88K range in NY). I know they say we have plenty of money in the fund, but as a private citizen whose retirement is based solely on my own savings- it just seems odd that they might have to take money that I could put away as a responsible person to pay for someone who no longer even works. Maybe if I was if I had a cushy position provided by the government instead of working 2 jobs and paying for night school to be a nurse my opinions would be different. Or if I was 62 and social security was my only retirement- I guess I would be all for sending my bills to the 20 & 30 yr olds who are able to find jobs so I could stay in my home with dignity.

The funds should pay out what is in there. If it runs out- so be it, people's payments get less. If the fund invested all their money with Madoff, that was their mistake. maybe social security should pay out whats left in the fund after the government takes its cut- maybe the payments go to only $20 and the President has to tell the american people the truth that for decades our congress has been stealing and its all gone. So our seniors will have to wear blue vests and be walmart greeters.

ZH...The latest AAR data is out and it is far from justifying Buffett's optimism in railroad traffic. Carloads this week were down 13.7% over one year, and 18.2% lower compared to 2007. In the ever important western section (so conveniently served by Burlington Northern) the decline is even more pronounced at 14.3% YoY.

It appears Alstry is not the only one concerned about municipal debt.....

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Allstate Corp., the largest publicly traded U.S. home and auto insurer, is paring its municipal-bond holdings because state and local governments are “not in great shape,” Chief Executive Officer Thomas Wilson said.

“We’ve just recently begun to reduce our exposure to municipals because we are uncomfortable with some of the fiscal practices of some of the government entities,” Wilson said yesterday in an interview after the Northbrook, Illinois-based company reported a third-quarter profit. “If you look at their balance sheets or income statements and put it in financial terms, they are not in great shape.”

LOTS OF FIRST TIMES BY 11.10.9

Nov. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Bridgestone Corp., the world’s largest tiremaker by sales, fell to the lowest in more than four months after predicting an annual loss as a result of plant closures in Australia and New Zealand.

Bridgestone hasn’t posted a net loss since at least 1961, when it went public, according to Kanako Kimura, a company spokeswoman.